


A Life for a Life

by phoreau



Category: Hololive, Virtual Streamer Animated Characters
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, F/F, First Meetings, Resurrection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-12 22:41:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29018367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phoreau/pseuds/phoreau
Summary: Rushia is just a necromancer doing her own thing but this time she didn't expect to resurrect someone so... queer.
Relationships: Houshou Marine/Uruha Rushia
Comments: 8
Kudos: 81





	A Life for a Life

**Author's Note:**

> this is messy as hell but I love this ship so whatever

Rushia understood a few things about life. It was such a fragile concept, no one knows where it really came from and how a soul could just pop into existence from a person's body but she could feel souls everywhere she goes. Fluttering like a butterfly's wings, a human's soul once came from a cocoon - an empty shell inside another human - until life is given birth for it to explore the world. There are billions of souls that walked around everywhere and she could feel the beating of people's hearts but life isn't exactly her expertise.

What she felt more confident about is death. She could differentiate the difference between a living soul and one that is only wandering around the Earth for unique reasons - the smell of life and death are very distinct. Being a necromancer, her eyes would always gaze at the souls that couldn't find their way back to heaven but it's still not an easy task to communicate with ones who are a step away from hell. To others, life and death should never be separated or dealt with for they are the balance of everything in this world. Rushia isn't exactly a fan of that. 

Whenever she could smell the scent of a soul who asks to reset the clock and defy the cycle, she would contemplate it. Her eyes would casually follow the butterflies that dance around the peculiar smell of a soul that is filled with regret and that longs for another chance. Though of course it's natural that a necromancer like her would try to guide the souls in her own way, she would only choose the ones with the strongest and most awful stench that she couldn't help but do something about it.

And so, with Rushia's hands just above the bloodied corpse, her crimson eyes soon glowed like fire while her butterflies flapped their wings that glowed blue like the sky. She let herself mumble and cast the usual spell even if she doesn't feel like it. This soul had such an annoying smell it was as if it would attack her any moment if she didn't do anything about it.

"Rise." 

With a command, the skin of the corpse that seemed to have been slowly drying up became fuller. The person's lips that were cold as ice are now breathing with every sign of life. Rushia could hear the soul's desperation and agony turn into confusion, slowly rushing back to the body with excitement. She saw the scene multiple times in her life whenever she would revive the dead and it's not much of a deal.

But she would be lying if it didn't make her chest feel lighter. Finally, the smell is gone, Rushia thought.

The necromancer raised her arm to collect back her precious butterflies, already thinking where she should head next. That was until she felt the hem of her sleeve being tucked lightly. Just when she turned her head around to hear what the person had to say -

"W-WOAH, WOAH, WHAT? I'M ALIVE." The body that was just laying across the floor with blood - pulseless and motionless - is now standing upright with energy that almost threw Rushia off. "I'M SURE I WAS JUST BLOWN OFF THE SHIP EARLIER?" Now that she was looking at the fomermly-dead stranger, she had an eyepatch that she didn't notice. "THOSE SHITHEADS, THEY'LL PAY FOR MESSING WITH ME!" She revived a pirate (a lively one at that) it seems. But oh well, it's time for her to leave. 

"W-WAIT!" Rushia stopped from her tracks once again. What is it now? "You… did you just-"

"Revive you? Yes, I just did." She expected some kind of gratitude but not… _this_. She did not expect the pirate to give the dumbest smile she has ever seen and suddenly tackle her into the most surprising yet warm hug she had since decades. Rushia almost lost her balance but the stranger's embrace stopped her from falling.

"Seriously?! Thank you so much! I mean, Senchou really thought that Death would be the one greeting me but it's a necromancer instead! You have no idea what I would've done if you didn't come here to resurrect me like seriously are you not sure you're not an angel or something 'cuz that cuteness of yours is a lot to take in too!" It took her a few seconds to properly process what just happened. The pirate also talked like she would never run out of breath which distracted Rushia.

She isn't exactly foreign to such reactions but she didn't expect that the soul with the dirtiest and most unbearable scent she ever smelled didn't have any sort of malice. The dark energy of revenge didn't feel strong whatsoever and the necromancer could feel that the soul is full of humanity. Despite that, she still pushed the stranger as hard as she could. 

"What was that for-"

"Do you even know what personal space is?" Rushia's voice dropped so hard that even the stranger flinched. "I understand that you're overjoyed for your second chance at life but please have some decency."

"I-I'm… sorry." The pirate's loud voice suddenly became small and cutesy; it sounded obnoxious. She even started pouting and wriggling around, sticking her butt out a bit. "Senchou was just a bit too thankful."

Seriously, what kind of person did I just revive? Aren't pirates supposed to be tough and evil? Robbers of the sea and all that? There were numerous thoughts the necromancer had but she could only heave a sigh. "You've been calling yourself that title for a while now."

The woman started to smile like an idiot once again though this time with a sense of confidence. "Of course, after all, I'm the Captain of the Houshou Pirates, Houshou Marine desu~!" She also did some… interesting poses that made Rushia squint her eyes and furrow her brow. "What about you, necromancer-san?"

"Uruha Rushia nanodesu." Rushia said before giving a slight bow and a small smile. "Houshou-senchou, it's my pleasure meeting you. I could sense your strong will to live and so I granted you another chance but you should use it carefully from now on. I won't be here to revive you once again and I doubt we'll ever cross paths but please live happily. If you'll excuse me, I have some matters to attend to." She watched the pirate blink at her a few times with lips slightly parted. Sensing that there's nothing else to say, she started to walk away.

"I… I won't forget this, Rushia-san! Senchou promises that I will keep on living for you, and I refuse to die if you wouldn't take my life with your own hands!" 

Huh? 

"Since you're the reason that I'm here then I'm willing to do anything you wish as long as I can pay for it in my lifetime. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and a life for a life. Just tell me if I can repay you in any way I can!"

Wait…

"U-Unless if it's with my body, of course Senchou's body is a treasure. But… thinking about it… i-if a cute girl like you wants it then…" 

Wait, wait, wait. What is this girl saying?

"S-Senchou is willing to be your cum dump-"

"Hold it right there you pervert!!!" Rushia finally snapped. "I… you… I don't care about your body or whatever, why would you even think about that?! I'm starting to regret reviving you and I'll kill you right here right now if you don't quit your nonsense." She started breathing heavily, her face flushed red like the stranger's hair color, and she didn't even realize she forcefully laid her hands on top of the pirate's mouth.

"M-mmm!!" Rushia finally came back to her senses and she released her grip. "Phew… I thought I would actually die again after like 15 minutes of being alive season two." The stranger - or should she say acquaintance - still managed to let out a laugh. 

"I'll get going now. Excuse me for being a bit rude so let's just forget that ever happened. May we never cross paths again, Houshou-senchou."

"You can just call me Marine."

"Marine-senchou."

"Or maybe just Senchou?"

"...Fine, Senchou."

"Sounds good! But Rushia-chan, I just said I wanted to repay you in any way I can so you can't just get rid of me. The gift of life is the best I could ever receive and there's no way am I just walking away without fulfilling your request."

"It's impossible."

"Huh?!"

This kind of situation is rare for Rushia. There may be some grateful souls that would try their best to repay her but she knew that it would be impossible for them. The thought itself was nice, but the necromancer knew that her wish would never be fulfilled no matter who the person may be.

She sighed, "I don't need you to repay me. If you live a longer and more satisfactory life then that's more than I could ask for. I appreciate your offer but it's unnecessary. If you want to have some sort of relief or self-satisfaction, just reward yourself with a successful voyage. Have fun on your future adventures, Senchou." Rushia already said everything she wanted to say so there's no need to wait any second. 

That's right, no human would ever be able to make her feel satisfied. No one would ever be able to pass all the limits and boundaries of mortality and reality. Not even her. She, Uruha Rushia, one of the greatest necromancers that ever lived and continued to live for centuries, could never get what she truly asks for. Within the lifespan of who knows what number, she already accepted that her one and only wish is impossible to grant.

It was laughable to say the least.

"But what if I could make it possible." Rushia froze once again.

No, she shouldn't listen to this. 

She shouldn't feel tempted.

She has to block the annoying voice out.

"For the person who gave me life once again, this only means one thing." The pirate's boots grazing the rocks sounded louder in every step but the voices in her head that warned her pierced through her whole being.

Leave. 

Don't listen. Just walk away.

_Leave._

Don't be swayed by her words. Just ignore anything she said.

_LEAVE!_

"I have no time for this." Rushia's head was now filled with multiple voices arguing and pushing her to move. It made every inch of her muscle be forced to walk away.

But the hand on her shoulder was stronger than she anticipated. "Then I'll give you all the time in the world." Even if the voices were loud, annoying, and deafening, she could still hear Senchou's voice clearly. "I may not know who you really are but you're the one who saved my life and I-"

Don't listen to her bullshit.

You should get out of there quick!

Why are you being an idiot and listening to her?

Rushia, just _**leave.**_

"I give my whole life to you." 

The voices that were drilling through Rushia's head disappeared in a second. The moment she heard that, nothing else mattered anymore. Not even the voices that ruled over her for hundreds of years and especially not her common sense that was slapping her face since earlier.

Nothing mattered anymore except that statement.

"I see."

That was everything Rushia needed to hear before her lips curved to a smirk and she looked at the pirate in the eye. Marine smiled, relieved that the girl finally looked at her properly but the happiness was short-lived. Way too short-lived.

Senchou never felt this heavy in her whole life. Never to the point that her legs even gave up on her. Her whole body was being weighed down into the ground with a force that she couldn't even fathom. The necromancer's eyes that were so calm are now glowing with a shade of red that was both breathtaking yet terrifying. The butterflies around her also doubled, tripled - or perhaps multiplied tenfold - and they started to swarm around Marine like predators hunting on a powerless prey.

"If that's what you ask for, then I don't have any other reason to refuse." Rushia muttered with such a beautiful smile that Marine forgot she already started to clutch her chest with the pressure that kept pushing her down. She couldn't understand what was happening right now but it felt as if her body didn't have any choice but to bend to the necromancer's will. It was as if…

"A-are you taking my soul from me?"

A giggle escaped the girl's lips and it sent chills to Marine’s spine. 

"No, I'm binding it with mine."

"What does that…"

"None of us would die unless it's by the hand of the other. So, until then," Rushia lifted Marine's chin, "try your best to kill me." The smile on the girl’s face was so sweet it made Marine feel dizzy just looking at her. “If you do, your soul would finally be free from my grasp.”

"You want me to kill you…?" Marine could barely speak as she struggled to even keep her body upright.

“That is if you want to be a mortal once again.” The moment the spell was finally casted, a sharp throb rippled in Marine’s body. It reminded her when an enemy sword struck her back but the pain she felt just now struck her heart. 

“AH!” The pirate cried out before letting her body fall down on the ground. Her whole body was still shaking from the impact yet she tried her best to get back up. When she was finally able to stand, the only trace of the necromancer left was a butterfly on her shoulder. 

“Rushia-chan? Rushia…chan...? Rushia!!” She yelled, hoping the necromancer would show up again. “Aahh, forget it.”

Marine let the butterfly rest on her finger as she pondered what kind of crazy pact she just made. “I wanted to ask more from her but I guess I’ll just leave it at that.” She stretched her arms and yawned. “My crew is waiting for me, I hope they aren’t mourning and bawling their eyes out.”

The pirate looked around for her sword, grabbing and blowing the dust off from it. “I should worry about the necromancer later, how the hell am I going to get back to my ship?” She grumbled and shook her head. The impact of the cannonball sending her out from the sea and into the shore is too powerful. “Dammit, if only I had some kind of way to track it back...” The butterfly suddenly swirled around her, flailing its wings like crazy. “Woah there, buddy! Are you trying to tell me something?”

The butterfly calmed down once again and started to fly towards the northeast. Marine didn’t understand it, but she trusted her gut feeling and lifted her eyepatch, revealing her golden eye. “It’ll be hard to see you fly around in the dark so don’t leave Senchou behind!” She giggled when the butterfly started to slow down.

After some time of walking around the island, she soon saw a trail of smoke not far ahead. Marine grinned to herself but she knew celebrating too early would be bad so she grabbed the hilt of her sword. “Careful, Rushi.” She even gave the butterfly a nickname. “They’re either my crew or a bunch of enemies.” 

But the butterfly only sped up. “Rushi!” She whisper-yelled and started to run as well, “I just told you not to-”

“Senchou!”

“Are you alright?!”

“We’ve been searching for you all day!”

“You’re alive!!”

“Senchou!!!” One by one, her crewmates started to run towards her with tears of joy. Marine knew they’d all be concerned for her but she was still quite shocked that her crew - who she trained with for years - are now babies hugging and kneeling beside her. It was a surprise but a pleasant and welcome one. 

“Kimitachi...” Marine spoke softly and tried to comfort the weeping crew all at once. “Your Senchou is fine, so calm down and hear me out.” Her voice was soon overpowered by the delighted yells and woo’s of her crew. She knew they’d start throwing a drinking party soon so she could only smile and laugh with them.

Maybe she could tell them her fateful encounter with a necromancer later. 

When the drinking finally started, one of her crew brought out the banjo. It started to get even louder when most of them were already drunk. One of them stood up and sang while the others clapped along the beat, the joyful songs bouncing all over the ship. 

“Hey Senchou, how did you survive that?” One of the crewmates asked. The music stopped and everyone looked at Marine once again. 

“Erm… I died.” 

“What?!?” 

“And got revived by a necromancer.” Her crew went ballistic once again and started asking questions. Who is the necromancer? Where was she blown off? Why did she get resurrected? All sorts of questions that the captain had to tell them to stop and listen to her.

“...And that’s why I’m here.” Marine said after explaining the whole thing, taking her mug and chugging it down. She did leave out the details about her making a pact with Rushia, though. “It sounds ridiculous but I’m not kidding.”

There was a moment of silence and the crewmates just stared at each other for a while. One of them cleared his throat and spoke up, “I believe you, Senchou. When we were fighting without you, a miracle happened.”

“A miracle?”

“Y-yes,” another one continued, “a swarm of butterflies distracted the enemies and we took that opportunity to push them off the ship. If it weren’t for that then our ship would’ve been stolen from us.”

“Really?!” Marine stood up from the revelation. Did Rushia just help her again? “Ahh, now my debt has increased! That girl really should tell me properly what she wants me to do!!” She was too focused on herself that she didn’t even notice the butterfly was already gone.

From that day on, Houshou Marine swore on her life and in the name of the Houshou Pirates that she would always be by Uruha Rushia’s side. It didn’t matter whatever kind of method she would use as long as she could see the necromancer again. She didn’t mind chasing for her for the rest of her life if it meant that she could finally repay the deed with her life.

But of course, she fell in the process. 

"Ahoy~!"

“Wha- why do I keep seeing you everywhere?!” Rushia took a step back. “Do you seriously want to kill me?! Go ahead, fight me then!”

Marine took a step forward, “I don’t want to kill you. In fact, I love you so much I want to hug you and smell your hair-”

“Gross, you goddamn creep!”

“I-I meant I want to be with you for the rest of our lives! C’mon Rushia, shouldn’t we just get married instead?”

“I’d rather die being single than be with you!!”

The pirate knew it’d be hard to persuade the necromancer but she couldn’t help it. If she’d just end up killing Rushia then she would rather experience everything with her. Marine never wanted to kill her from the start and she definitely doesn't want to kill her now. 

“Rushia, I’d give you all my love and body and myself and-”

“Why did I ever revive someone like you?!”

What Marine didn’t know is that she wasn’t chasing for the necromancer. Rushia was letting her catch up, making sure that in every step the pirate takes she wouldn’t be in danger. A smile came across her face watching Marine pout like a child and sway her hips in that annoying manner.

“Senchou is really grateful though~”

“Yeah, yeah,” Rushia rolled her eyes before mumbling, “I’m grateful too.” 

It’s not bad to have someone beside her for more centuries to come.

**Author's Note:**

> Marirushi ftw I need more from em


End file.
